It is well know that the use of nursing bottles can contribute to tooth decay and that frequent and long exposure to sugar can be particularly detrimental to a baby's teeth. It has also been recognized that it is desirable to take preventive measures against tooth decay at an early stage, as for example, the appearance of the first baby or milk teeth. A common preventive approach is to remove traces of sugars which are contained in most liquid nutrients from a baby's mouth after feeding. A common technique for removing traces of sugars from a baby's mouth is to feed the baby water following feeding with a nutrient.
As a result of the above, a number of dual and multi chamber nursing bottles have been developed. For example, a U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,995 of Wagner disclosers a nursing bottle having a pair of side-by-side reservoirs which are selectively coupled to a single nipple. The bottle includes a hollow body, an intermediate ring having a valve disc with two apertures and a nipple carrier having a valve plate with a single aperture. The nipple carrier is mounted over the intermediate ring and rotates to selectively connect the valve plate aperture with one of the valve disc apertures.
Another approach to a dual chamber nursing bottle is disclosed in the U.S. patent of Herrmann, U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,381 for a nursing bottle. As disclosed, a dual compartment nursing bottle for preventing carries in infants includes a valve-less dual compartment bottle. The bottle includes a first container defining a first compartment having a neck portion with a nipple and a second container defining a second compartment provided with a closure member having at least one relatively narrow outlet port for the second compartment.
A U.S. patent of John, U.S. Pat. No. 5,758,786 discloses a multi compartment baby bottle wherein the bottle is divided into multiple compartments by a series of vertically extending partitions radiating from a central axis. A nipple is attached to a collar which in turn is attached to the mouth of the container. The nipple includes a base portion having an aperture radially offset from the central axis of the nipple and which is adapted to register with only one of the compartments depending on the relative angular orientation of the nipple and the collar.
A still further approach to baby bottles with two separate fluid chambers is disclosed in a U.S. patent of McGee, U.S. Pat. No. 5,593,052. McGee discloses a divided fluid container for storing two fluids in a single bottle. A stopper attached to an annular flange of a flexible nipple is inserted into the opening of a cavity on one side of the bottle. A threaded collar presses the flange of the nipple against the rim of the bottle to make a fluid tight seal. Further, a ring supported by a stem connected to an anchor inside the stopper allows a user to remove the stopper when desired after removal of the threaded collar.
Notwithstanding the above, it is presently believed that there may be a large commercial market for an improved dual chamber nursery bottle in accordance with the present invention. There should be a commercial market for such bottles because they facilitate rinsing a baby's mouth and therefore should reduce tooth decay in infants. In addition, such bottles enable a mother to dilute a nutrient such as milk with water during feeding and without removing the nipple from the baby's mouth. A further advantage of such bottles is that they are easy to clean using the same brushes and techniques used in washing conventional nursing bottles.
It is also believed that the nursing bottles in accordance with the present invention can be manufactured and sold at a competitive cost, are durable and of relatively lightweight. Other advantages will be apparent from the following specification.